Yes

Sorry. A very sensitive issue for me. Up until the age of 15, I was a very academic and high-achieving student. I was on course to receive As pretty much across the board and the subjects I wasn't achieving an A in, I was achieving A*s (which I think is equivalent to a US A+ but I could be wrong).

I did very well with my coursework and modular examinations and was expected to hit the grades in my end of secondary school exams (GCSEs). Towards the latter half of Year 10 (Year 11 was the year in which main GCSE examinations are taken), my mood took a massive turn for the worse, I began walking out of lessons, skipping school and eventually I was sectioned and was in a bad mood state throughout the entire year that followed. I missed all but two exams which I took in hospital and I only achieved a B in them due to a lack of motivation to study.

Then, when I went on to college (16-18) and I was doing my A-Levels, hypomania and a big obsession with the subjects I was taking helped me excel and gain Distinction (out of Pass, Merit and Distinction) grades on all of the units I completed. Unfortunately, hypomania was followed by a full-blown manic episode with psychotic symptoms and that was then followed by a crippling depression. I didn't sleep for over a week. Not once bit of sleep (except for perhaps micro-sleeps, which I wouldn't have noticed anyway). I was once again hospitalised.

This is why I can boldly and confidently say that Bipolar Disorder ruined my life. It took every little thing away from me. My social life, my education, my employment prospects. Everything. If I could go back in time with the foreknowledge of what illness I had and what could be done to manage it, and have to relive all my school years again (including the bullying) I would.

RB